Dan Pohl
| Dan Pohl | |
|---|---|
| — Golfer — | |
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Danny Joe Pohl |
| Nickname | "Pohlcat" |
| Born |
April 1, 1955 Mount Pleasant, Michigan |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight | 175 lb (79 kg; 12.5 st) |
| Nationality |
 United States |
| Residence | Phoenix, Arizona |
| Career | |
| College | University of Arizona |
| Turned professional | 1977 |
| Former tour(s) |
PGA Tour Champions Tour |
| Professional wins | 3 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 2 |
| Best results in major championships | |
| Masters Tournament | 2nd: 1982 |
| U.S. Open | T3: 1982 |
| The Open Championship | CUT: 1986 |
| PGA Championship | 3rd: 1981 |
| Achievements and awards | |
| Vardon Trophy | 1987 |
Danny Joe Pohl (born April 1, 1955) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. He won two PGA Tour tournaments (the 1986 Colonial and the 1986 World Series of Golf at Firestone Country Club) and tied Craig Stadler for first place in the 1982 Masters Tournament before losing in a playoff. Pohl competed for his country as a member of the 1987 Ryder Cup team at Muirfield Village Golf Club.
Amateur career
Born and raised in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, Pohl attended the University of Arizona in Tucson, and played for the Wildcats' golf team. He was inducted into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame in 1985. He is considered the greatest athlete ever produced by Mt. Pleasant High School, where he has been inducted into its Athletic Hall of Fame, earning All State honors in three sports (golf, baseball and basketball). He played high school golf for Steve Robbins, father of 9-time LPGA winner Kelly Robbins, who also coached PGA Tour player Doug LaBelle II and LPGA player Cindy Figg, all of whom followed Pohl. As a prep baseball player, Pohl was scouted by Major League teams and considered a top prospect as a pitcher/shortstop/outfielder. He was a star point guard on a prep basketball team that went undefeated (20-0) during his senior season. He twice won the Michigan Amateur Golf Championship (1975 and 1978). He was inducted into the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame in 2004.
Professional career
Pohl turned pro in 1977 and joined the PGA Tour in 1978. He won two tournaments on the PGA Tour during his career both of which came in 1986, when he finished fifth on the money list: the Colonial National Invitation and the NEC World Series of Golf. Pohl had 70 top-10 finishes including more than a dozen second or third place finishes. A highly ranked player in the world, his career was still ascending in 1987 when he posted the lowest scoring average on the PGA Tour and won the Vardon Trophy. The following year, Pohl began to suffer a series of injuries starting with low back surgery in 1987 that dramatically altered his competitiveness.
Pohl has seven top-10 finishes in major tournaments. His best finish in a major was 2nd at the 1982 Masters Tournament which he lost to Craig Stadler in a playoff. He also had a third place finish at the 1981 PGA Championship and a T-3 at the 1982 U.S. Open.[1]
In 1980, Pohl led the tour in driving average at 274.1 yards, and again in 1981 with a 280.1 yard average. He was a member of the 1987 Ryder Cup Team. He won the Vardon Trophy in 1987 and was inducted into the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame in May 2004.
Since turning 50 in April 2005, Pohl has played on the Champions Tour. His best finish at this level has been a T-3 at the 2005 Commerce Bank Long Island Classic. Following his back injury, Pohl served as an on-course TV golf analyst for NBC Sports working with Dick Enberg and Johnny Miller along with Roger Maltbie and others for several years. He has designed a golf course in Michigan, the PohlCat, in the town where he was born. He lives in Phoenix, Arizona, and enjoys hunting, fishing and spending time with his children Michelle, Joshua, and Taylor. He has a regular weekly radio show in Phoenix, "Arizona Golf" and is involved with Hopkins Golf as an executive in a golf club company founded by Greg Hopkins, the former CEO of Cleveland Golf.
Amateur wins
- 1975 Michigan Amateur
- 1977 Michigan Amateur
PGA Tour wins
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | May 18, 1986 | Colonial National Invitation | −5 (68-69-68=205) | Playoff | Payne Stewart |
| 2 | Aug 24, 1986 | NEC World Series of Golf | −10 (69-66-71-71=277) | 1 stroke | Lanny Wadkins |
PGA Tour playoff record (1–2)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1982 | Masters Tournament | Craig Stadler |
Lost to par on first extra hole |
| 2 | 1985 | Canon Sammy Davis Jr.-Greater Hartford Open | Phil Blackmar, Jodie Mudd |
Blackmar won with birdie on first extra hole |
| 3 | 1986 | Colonial National Invitation | Payne Stewart |
Won with birdie on first extra hole |
Major championship is shown in bold.
Other wins
- 1988 Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Championship (with Dan Marino)
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | DNP | DNP | 2 | T8 | T35 | DNP | T31 | CUT | T16 | 42 |
| U.S. Open | CUT | DNP | T3 | CUT | DNP | CUT | CUT | T9 | T12 | T29 |
| The Open Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | CUT | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| PGA Championship | DNP | 3 | T70 | 8 | T39 | T12 | T26 | T14 | 8 | T24 |
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10
Summary
| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 6 |
| U.S. Open | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 4 |
| The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| PGA Championship | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 9 |
| Totals | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 12 | 25 | 19 |
- Most consecutive cuts made – 8 (1987 U.S. Open – 1989 PGA)
- Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (1981 PGA – 1982 U.S. Open)
References
External links
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